Nissan is to build the latest version of the Qashqai in its plants in the UK, it revealed on Wednesday, in a move it said would safeguard 6,000 jobs.

The carmaker said the car would be designed at its Paddington design centre in London, before development switched to its technical centre in Cranfield. It will be built at Nissan's Sunderland production plant.

The £192m investment was announced by chief executive Carlos Ghosn at a meeting with prime minister David Cameron.

Ghosn said: "The UK has been a cornerstone of Nissan manufacturing since 1986, with the Sunderland plant setting important benchmarks for quality and efficiency in Europe and around the world. It's the home of the Qashqai, one of Nissan's biggest product successes. And as Nissan's leadership in sustainable transportation grows, the plant will become one of the pillars of our zero-emission manufacturing."

In addition, Nissan is investing £420m in the Sunderland plant for the production of the electric Leaf from 2013 and in a new standalone facility to make lithium-ion batteries for both Renault and Nissan vehicles from 2012.

Cameron said: "This investment from Nissan is fantastic news and a great demonstration of the strength and vitality of the UK car industry. That future manufacturing and R&D has been secured is a tribute to the skill, expertise and hard work of Nissan's UK workforce.

Business secretary Vince Cable said: "This announcement is welcome news that brings further long-term investment in what is already the UK's biggest car production plant. Nissan's Sunderland plant is one of the great success stories of British manufacturing. Development of the Qashqai and other new models will reinforce that."

The jobs safeguarded include roles with Nissan and with suppliers. The production of each Qashqai involves 3,779 parts – 83.6% of which come from 224 UK suppliers.